Prof. Sergio Della Sala, a major figure in the fight against neuroscience quackery, was the first winner recently of the University of Edinburgh Tam Dalyell Prize for Excellence in Engaging the Public with Science. On 10 December 2008, coinciding with the presentation of the award, he delivered a lecture entitled Tall Tales about the Mind and Brain. The video of the lecture is available online here on the University of Edinburgh website. Watch out for the thinking donkey image from this blog, which featured briefly in the presentation!
Prof. Della Sala is well known as the editor of two books on mind myths, the first one that featured extensively in some of my seven posts on mind myths up to now (three more to go). The books are:
Della Sala, S. (Ed.)(1999). Mind myths: Exploring popular assumptions about the mind and brain. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
Della Sala, S. (Ed.)(2007). Tall Tales about the Mind and Brain: Separating Fact from Fiction. London: Oxford University Press.
Tall tales seems to be based on a conference Tall tales about the mind and brain that was held in Edinburgh in 2007. Based on the speakers and abstracts I would venture that it was excellent. Wish I could have been there!
Here is a list of just some of the stuff Della Sala addressed in his Tam Dalyell lecture and press interviews coinciding with the lecture:
Some of these I have previously blogged about, follow the links. Others I shall attend to later. It was good to see that academics are also weighing in on issues of quackery. Maybe we'll win the fight yet!
The newspaper articles reporting on his lecture and the interviews can be found at:
Is "Brain Gym" scientific? The Herald
Celebrated neuroscientist to set the record straight. The Journal
Brain exercises are 'waste of time'. The Guardian
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